SEIU members fight back

A couple dozen members of Service Employees International Local 1021 who work at the Hall of Justice called a press conference this afternoon to explain their side of the story in the ongoing saga over whether the union will agree to contract concessions.

But reporters weren’t the only ones who showed up. So did Gilda Valdez, chief of staff for SEIU 1021. Union members are clearly peeved at their leaders for not adequately explaining the concessions the group voted down last week – and for not communicating about the idea of a revote next week either.

“We pay your salary!” one member told Valdez. “We already said no! Why should there be a revote?” called out another. After a heated back-and-forth, Valdez apologized to the group and promised to send a union leader to the Hall of Justice to explain to them any new concessions they’re asked to vote for.

Monica Wheaton, an SEIU member who works in the victims’ services division at the District Attorney’s office, told us members are angry they’re being vilified by the mayor for turning down the agreement when other unions aren’t agreeing to givebacks either.

“We just want it to be fair, and we don’t want to have to give up more than other unions,” she said.

Valdez said the 49-member bargaining unit is still trying to hammer out an agreement with the mayor’s office to bring to the 11,000 SEIU members as soon as Friday.